RO system... HELP

[mollymom]

So, I'm on a well and my hardness ppm is about 500, and because of the agricultural crops around me the fertilizer gets into the water causing nitrates to come into the tank, and they read 80-100 ppm (on the API master test kit). So I'm thinking I need to get an RO unit, so that I can actually have fish. My tank is medium-heavily planted, and the plants are doing great, but now I need to stock my tank with fish.

My questions are...

(1. How do you connect an RO system to your tank?
(2. What is "waste water"? And what do you do with it?
(3. How many GPD (Gallons Per Day) should there be for my 50 gallon tank? What ratio of tap, and RO should there be?
(4. Does the RO system go around the clock? Or part of the day?

FYI: I have looked into all the different methods of removing nitrate, and there is really no other way, for my tank, than to put clean water into my tank, to remove the nitrate. This has been an ongoing problem, as I live in an agricultural area, the nitrates in the fertilizer go into my well. My tank is not dirty and filthy from not cleaning it. My plants are beautiful and have been thriving for months, my tank is not dirty and filthy. I included a picture so you see what I mean. Also, the picture I put was from a while ago and my sag in the bottom left corner is all over the tank, now, and is 10 times as thick.

Thanks

 

[Bloodroot]

1. You don't actually connect an RO system to your tank. You connect it to you water tap and then fill a water container that you would then carry over to your tank and fill it.

A couple questions that come to my mind...
A. do you drink that water?!?! That must taste freaking horrible. Ours is around 450ppm so I know your pain.
B. If you don't drink that water do you get 5 gallon jugs from somewhere to drink? If so that is probably RO water in the jug.

2. Waste water is a second line that comes out of the RO unit that many people use for watering plants or just letting it go down the drain.

3. Ratio of tap to RO water depends on what fish you put in there. I personally just monitor my GH and KH in my tanks; when I do a water change if the tank is to hard I add RO water and if it's to soft I add tap water. However be very careful with my method swinging the KH and GH is not good for the fish. The better option (and eaiser) is to on a very small scale (under 1 litre) mix RO and tap water to find the perfect GH and KH for your fish then take those same proportions and make a 5 gallon pail full of perfect water for your tank.
4. Most RO systems I have seen are on demand basis. Many people where I live have a second tap in their sink specifically for drinking water with an RO unit hooked up under the counter. I have attached a picture of what it looks like under a kitchen sink. I am pretty sure the storage tank is optional.



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[mollymom]

Hi, sorry for the late reply!!!

Thanks for clearing that up for me. We do not drink our water, because, nitrates over 10ppm is considered contaminated and dangerous to drink. We do get five gallon water jugs from the store. I've tested it and the pH was 7, and the nitrates were 0ppm. I did put ten gallons of that water in once and it brought the nitrates down a lot! So, having an RO system is really the same as pouring of water from the store into the tank? Plus no waste water...

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[dalto]

If you only have one small tank it is probably just as easy to buy your water. That being said, it would probably be cheaper in the long-term to get an undersink RO unit and make your own water.

Some people save and use the waste water but most just send it down the drain.

 

[dalto]

4. Most RO systems I have seen are on demand basis. Many people where I live have a second tap in their sink specifically for drinking water with an RO unit hooked up under the counter. I have attached a picture of what it looks like under a kitchen sink. I am pretty sure the storage tank is optional.

Most RO systems are very slow. The storage tanks are not generally optional unless you are doing some type of drip system. The ones you see with a separate faucet on the sink are usually pulling it out of a storage container under the sink.